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Monday, November 23, 2009

Markets take a cue from falling greenback and tremendous strength in Gold

Asian stocks settled mostly up today as risk appetite swung in the action following a broad retreat in US dollar from late Friday highs. Stock specific activity dominated in the regional benchmarks as the investor's eyed the gains in commodities. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.4% to 22,771.39 for its first advance in five sessions. China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.9% to 3,338.66. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.7%, Taiwan's Taiex climbed 0.1%, and South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.1%. New Zealand's NZX 50 ended flat and the Philippines' main index fell 0.7%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures contract was recently up 70 points in screen trade, pointing to a strong opening on Wall Street.

The Indian market showed a notable gain on Monday, lifted by market heavyweight Reliance Industries after it made a preliminary, non-binding cash offer to buy a controlling stake in U.S-based bankrupt chemicals maker LyondellBasell. The stock ended up 3.31% on a heavy volume of 12.6 lakh shares.

The BSE Sensex opened on a positive note and rose to a high of 17,215 before finishing at 17,180, up 158 points or 0.93%.

In foreign-exchange markets, the euro was higher against the dollar at $1.4977 compared with $1.4851 in late New York trade Friday, and 133.25 yen against 132.26 yen -- helped by gold's gains and general bearish dollar sentiment. Nymex crude oil for January delivery was $78.42 a barrel, up 95 cents from the previous close. Gold snapped up to fresh highs above $1160 per ounce as investors continued to put faith in the yellow metal after the recent array of gains.

Nifty November 2009 futures were at 5,101.50, at a discount of 2.05 points as compared to spot closing of 5,103.55. Turnover in NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment was Rs 80,777.38 crore, sharply lower than Rs 98,015.39 crore on Friday, 20 November 2009.

The near-month November 2009 futures contract will expire on Thursday, 26 November 2009.

State Bank of India (SBI) November 2009 futures were at premium at 2,317.05 compared to the spot closing of 2,311.65.

Reliance Industries November 2009 futures were at premium at 2,197 compared to the spot closing of 2,193.20.

ICICI Bank November 2009 futures were at premium at 916.10 compared to the spot closing of 913.95.

In the cash market, the S&P CNX Nifty rose 51.10 points or 1.01% at 5,103.55.

On the back of buoyant oil and metal prices, European stocks that opened strong were trading with gains of over 1.5% at the time of writing this report.

Major Asian indices that opened mixed managed to turn green with the BSE Sensex surging the most and the Nikkei 225 dipping the most with a loss of 0.54%. SGX Nifty ended the day at 5110 with decent gains of 33 points.

Traders in US markets would be keenly waiting for existing home sales numbers for the month of October that will be out today.

Indian indices

Sensex opened 45 points higher and went to move higher as global indicators turned more positive, doubled with the buzz of RIL acquiring a US petrochemical firm that helped the Sensex heavyweight to jump by 3.31%. Sensex managed to stay in green through the day as oil and gas and fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) stocks shone.Sensex hit the high of 17215 before closing at 17180 that is higher by 0.93% or 158 points. Nifty reclaimed the strong psychological level of 5100 and ended the day at 5104, up by 51 points.

Sensex sentiment

The market breadth, the number of advancing shares to declining shares, was positive, as out of 2,826 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,560 stocks advanced, whereas 1,178 stocks declined. Eighty eight stocks closed unchanged.

Sectoral & stock screening

Out of the 13 sectoral indices, only four were down and that only marginally. BSE Oil & Gas topped the list with gaining sectors being up by 2.55% followed by BSE FMCG that rose 2.05%. BSE Metal and BSE HC were up by over 1% each. Among losers, BSE TECK fell the most by 0.87% followed by BSE IT that was down by 0.30%.

On stocks’ front, GMDC topped the chart of gaining shares surging by 17.19% for the day to be followed by Hindustan Zinc (up 9.23%). Divis Laboratories and HCL Technologies were up by over 5% each. Among losers, Balrampur Chini Mills slid the most by 6.12%, followed by Bharti Airtel that fell by 4.48%, GE Shipping that shed 3.48% and Mphasis that was down by 3.20%.

Volatility ruled the roost as the key benchmark indices pared gains after striking one-month highs in mid-afternoon trade. The BSE 30-share Sensex rose 158.33 points or 0.93%, up close to 135 points from the day's low and off about 35 points from the day's high. The Sensex and the 50-unit S&P CNX Nifty attained their highest closing levels in more than a month. Firm global stocks and weak US index aided the rally on the domestic bourses

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) led the rally. The stock surged more than 3% today, 23 November 2009, after the company said it has put a bid to acquire bankrupt chemicals maker LyondellBasell Industries. Metal, FMCG and banking and auto stocks rose. The market breadth was strong.

Intraday volatility was high as traders rolled over positions in the derivative segment from November 2009 series to December 2009 series ahead of the expiry of the near month November 2009 contracts on Thursday, 26 November 2009. The key benchmark indices scaled one-month highs in early trade on higher Asian stocks. The market pared gains in morning trade. The market surged later with the Sensex hit a fresh one-month high in early afternoon trade. A bout of volatility was witnessed later on alternate bouts of buying and selling. The market pared gains after hitting fresh one-month high in mid-afternoon trade.

A weak dollar boosted world stocks, as traders borrow against the low-yielding greenback to reinvest elsewhere in what's known as the carry trade. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, fell 0.7% to 75.153 in recent trading. The dollar has tumbled this year on speculation the US Federal Reserve will keep interest rates low for a prolonged period of time to aid recovery in the US economy.

Dovish comments from a US Federal Reserve official on Sunday, 22 November 2009, added weight to expectations that US monetary policy would stay ultra-loose for a prolonged period. St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said on Sunday that the central bank should keep alive its mortgage-related asset purchase programme beyond a planned end date to help stimulate the economy.

Those remarks contrasted with comments on Friday, 20 November 2009, from European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet that banks risked becoming addicted to easy money. The euro-zone central bank on Friday announced its first step in making it tougher for commercial banks to get loans. Trichet said he would make sure extraordinary liquidity measures would be phased out in a timely and gradual fashion.

The International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Monday that the global economy is in a holding pattern and vulnerable to more upheaval. He said a lasting recovery will depend on policymakers taking the proper steps in the coming months.

Closer home, junior finance Minister Namo Narain Meena said on Friday that the government has not yet chalked out a roadmap to withdraw stimulus in the first half of 2010. Early in November, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said the government would take appropriate action next year to wind down stimulus.

Mass protests by sugarcane farmers backed by political opposition parties forced the parliament to adjourn for a second day on Friday, 20 November 2009, a major headache for the ruling Congress party. The standoff over price deregulation highlights the difficulty Congress faces to balance the implementation of long-stalled financial reforms with the demands of its large rural base.

The government has set reform of the insurance sector as a priority for the winter parliament session that began on 19 November 2009. The bill, which was stalled in the last parliament, proposes raising the foreign investment limit in insurance companies from 26 % to 49%. The government also wants to open up the pension sector to private and foreign firms and give equal voting rights to foreigners in private-sector banks, which are currently limited to 10% irrespective of their actual holding.

Meanwhile, the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have reportedly decided to withdraw starting next January 2010 a facility that allowed Indian firms to buy back foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) issued to overseas investors, in yet another move to unwind measures introduced last year at the height of the global credit crisis. Companies that have issued such bonds, which have both debt and equity features, will have to convert them into shares or redeem them at face value, depending on investor preference.

In addition to the decision to discontinue the special facility for buying back FCCBs, the government has also reportedly proposed doing away the relaxation on pricing foreign borrowings, another measure announced last year to help Indian companies raise funds during the credit crunch. This is aimed at containing capital flows, which continue to be strong this year and have crossed the $15-billion mark.

The government is not considering imposing a tax to curb an influx in overseas funds, and indeed wants an increase in inflows, the deputy chairman of the government's planning commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Friday. He said foreign funds were needed for developing infrastructure such as road projects and were unlikely to create asset price bubbles.

Higher capital inflows have resulted in currency appreciation mainly in Asia and Latin America, prompting central banks contemplate a range of measures to hold back the tide.

The Institute of International Finance (IIF) forecasts that private capital flows will almost double over the next year, with Asia seeing the biggest surge. Global capital inflows from private and official sources will double from $349 billion in 2009 to $672 billion in 2010, the Washington-based association of financial institutions said in a recent research note. Emerging Asia, already the "unambiguous" leader of the global business cycle, will continue to dominate the private capital flow cycle, it concluded after surveying 30 key emerging economies.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrives in Washington on Monday for a state visit set to boost the burgeoning economic relationship between two countries, which had relatively marginal commercial dealings a decade ago.

European equities rose on Monday, snapping a four-day losing streak, with firmer crude and metal prices boosting commodity shares. The key benchmark indices in France, Germany and UK rose by between 1.42% to 1.78%.

The Markit flash German purchasing managers index rose to 53.5 in November from 52.3 in October, a three-month high. The manufacturing PMI rose to 52.0 from 51, which is a 17-month high, while the services PMI rose to 51.5 from 50.7.

Activity in the French private sector grew at its fastest pace in 37 months in November, a key survey showed today, in a sign that economic recovery will continue in the fourth quarter. The Markit/CDAF flash composite purchasing managers' index (PMI), which combines data from both the manufacturing and services sectors, rose to 59.8 in November 2009, its highest since October 2006, from 58.6 the previous month.

Private-sector activity across the 16-nation euro zone grew at the fastest pace in two years this month, according to the preliminary composite Markit purchasing managers index for November released Monday. The composite PMI rose to 53.7 in November 2009 from 53.0 in October 2009, the highest reading in 24 months. A reading of more than 50 indicates growth, while a reading of less than 50 signals contraction.

Some Asian stocks edged higher on Monday for first time in three days, on signs the economic recovery is gathering pace. The key benchmark indices in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore rose by between 0.05% to 1.41%. But the key benchmark indices in South Korea and Indonesia fell by between 0.1% to 0.41%. Japanese markets were closed on Monday for a holiday.

China's annual economic growth will reach 10% this quarter and grow even faster in the first quarter of 2010, said Yu Bin, a government researcher with the State Council Development Research Centre in remarks published on Monday.

Trading in US index futures indicated Dow could rise 90 points at the opening bell on Monday, 23 November 2009.

In US on Friday, unease about the economy's prospects drove investors to snap up defensive stocks seen better able to withstand an uncertain economy, limiting the Dow's losses. The Dow slipped 14.28 points, or 0.1%, to 10,318.16. The S&P 500 index was down 3.52 points, or 0.3%, to 1,091.38, while the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 10.78 points, or 0.5%, to 2,146.04.

A group of US business economists boosted their forecast for economic growth over the next year, but said the jobless rate will remain stubbornly high, a survey released on Monday showed. The National Association for Business Economists predicted real growth in gross domestic product for 2010 would be 2.9%, up from its October forecast for 2.6% growth.

The BSE 30-share Sensex rose 158.33 points or 0.93% to 17180.18, its highest since 20 October 2009. The Sensex rose 192.73 points at the day's high of 17214.58 in mid-afternoon trade. The Sensex rose 23.17 points at the day's low of 17045.02 in morning trade.

The S&P CNX Nifty rose 51.10 points or 1.01% to 5,103.55, its highest closing since 20 October 2009. It hit a high of 5,113.10. Nifty November 2009 futures were at 5,101.50, at a discount of 2.05 points as compared to spot closing of 5,103.55. Turnover in NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment was Rs 80,777.38 crore, sharply lower than Rs 98,015.39 crore on Friday, 20 November 2009.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 1562 shares advanced as compared with 1176 that declined. A total of 88 shares remained unchanged.

From the 30 share Sensex pack, 20 rose and rest fell.

A deluge of global liquidity has boosted stocks across the globe this year. Governments and central banks around the world have injected trillions of dollars in the past one year to pull the world out of a most severe recession since the 1930s Great Depression.

The Sensex is up 7532.87 points or 78.08% in calendar year 2009, as on 20 November 2009. From a 3-year closing low of 8,160.40 on 9 March 2009, the Sensex is up 9019.78 points or 110.53% as on 20 November 2009.

Coming back to today's trade, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.31% and the BSE Small-cap index rose 0.84%. Both the indices underperformed the Sensex.

Energy major Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 3.31% to Rs 2195.50. The company said it has put a bid to acquire bankrupt chemicals maker LyondellBasell Industries. RIL said that it had submitted a preliminary non-binding offer to acquire, for cash, a controlling interest in Rotterdam, Netherlands-based LyondellBasell.

RIL also said it is "reviewing a number of global opportunities for growth in its core business," including LyondellBasell. The conglomerate said its offer is "preliminary and subject to customary conditions, including conduct of due diligence, documentation and receipt of creditor support."

Meanwhile, RIL plans an aggressive exploration campaign, investments in petrochemicals and overseas acquisitions as India's top company by market capitalisation prepares itself for the next phase of growth. The company will work towards attaining global scale for its conventional energy platform petrochemicals, refining and oil and gas exploration and invest in its new businesses such as retailing and alternative energy, chairman Mukesh Ambani said at the company's annual meeting of shareholders on 17 November 2009.

RIL has set 27 November 2009 as the record date for a liberal 1:1 bonus share issue.

Metal stocks rose after a gauge of six metals traded on the London Metal Exchange, rose 0.73% on Friday, 20 November 2009. Sterlite Industies National Aluminum Company and Hindustan Zinc rose by between 0.78% to 9.23%.

Steel Authority of India (Sail) rose 1.57%. The government said on 19 November 2009 it is considering a 20% stake sale in steel major Sail, proceeds of which would partly fund the company's Rs 70000 crore expansion projects.

India's largest steel maker by sales Tata Steel rose 3.92% The company last week said it issued $ 546.9 million in new convertible bonds in exchange for $ 493 million of securities as part of a plan to reduce costs and ease repayment obligations. The company had said earlier this month the new foreign currency convertible bonds will have a yield-to-maturity of 4.5% and will mature in November 2014.

JSW Steel rose 1.33%. Japan's JFE Steel, the world's sixth-largest steelmaker, said on 19 November 2009 it will team up with JSW Steel on automotive steel production in India.

Demand for steel remains strong from auto, rural construction and infrastructure sectors. Also demand for construction grade steel has improved post monsoon season, and has resulted into higher sales.

India's largest commercial vehicle maker by sales Tata Motors rose 0.52%. Jaguar Land Rover received as much as 170 million pounds ($286 million) as a five-year working capital facility from General Electric Co.'s GE Capital division, the lender said on 16 November 2009. Tata Motors the owner of Jaguar Land Rover, is hopeful of turning around the unprofitable luxury unit as it cuts costs to battle a slump in sales during the global recession.

India's largest small car marker by sales Maruti Suzuki India rose 1.01%. The company's total sales grew 32.4% to 85415 units in October 2009, compared with 64490 units posted in the same month a year ago. India's largest bike marker by sales Hero Honda Motors rose 0.1%. The company reported a marginal increase in October sales at 354,156 units as against 352,449 units in the same month last year

India's largest tractor maker by sales Mahindra & Mahindra rose 0.24%. The company's overall sales climbed 32% in October this year to 18,410 units against 13,935 units in the same month last year.

But, India's second largest bike marker by sales Bajaj Auto fell 0.71%. Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of French car maker Renault and Japan's Nissan Motor Co, said, recently that an agreement had been signed with Bajaj Auto for a low-cost car which would come to India in 2012.

Car sales in India rose an annual 34% to 132,615 units in October 2009, boosted by festival demand and easier availability of loans, an industry body said on Wednesday 11 November 2009. Sales of trucks and buses, a gauge of economic activity, rose 52% to 42,562 units in October 2009, the data showed.

Banking shares rose on gains in American depository receipts on Friday 20 November 2009. India's second largest private sector bank by net profit HDFC Bank rose 0.5% as its ADR rose 2.92% on Friday.

India's largest private sector bank by net profit ICICI Bank rose 2.18% as its ADR rose 2.64% on Friday. The bank said on Saturday it raised $750 million (about Rs 3,500 crore) through an overseas bond issue, at an yield of 5.5%. The bank's net profit rose 2.6% to Rs 1040.13 crore on a 12.7% decline in total income to Rs 8480.73 crore in Q2 September 2009 over Q2 September 2008. The result was announced during trading hours on 30 October 2009.

Hopes of consolidation among PSU banks boosted shares of state-run banks for the second straight day. Union Bank, Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank, Bank of India rose by between 0.13% to 1.8%.

As per reports, Union Bank, Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank are keen on acquiring Corporation Bank whereas Canara Bank and Punjab National have shown interest in acquiring Dena Bank. As per reports, chiefs of Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of India and Bank of Baroda met Finance Ministry official on Wednesday, 18 November 2009, to discuss the pros and cons of consolidation among banks in India.

But, India's largest bank by net profit State Bank of India (SBI) fell 0.64%. State Bank of India said on 9 November 2009 said it had entered into an agreement with T. Rowe Price to sell a 6.5% holding each in UTI Asset Management Company and UTI Trustee Company. State Bank currently holds 25% in each of the companies and after the sale its holding would be reduced to 18.5%, it said in a statement.

SBI announced on 6 November 2009 it has revised downwards interest rates on deposits by 25-50 basis points for a few maturities effective from 9 November 2009. The bank's consolidated net profit rose 28.29% to Rs 3,133.16 crore on 22% rise in consolidated income to Rs 33,101.65 crore in Q2 September 2009 over Q2 September 2008. The results were announced on 31 October 2009.

India's largest dedicated home loan lender Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) rose 0.69%. The lender announced on 13 November 2009 it has agreed to acquire approximately 41% in the fully diluted equity share capital of Credila Financial Services from DSP Merrill Lynch Capital.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on 8 November 2009, financial reforms, such as building up a domestic bond market and expanding foreign investment in sectors like insurance, would be pushed forward.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Usha Thorat said on Monday 16 November 2009 the central bank will soon issue guidelines on provisioning for bad loans by banks

Banks and co-operatives have reportedly disbursed farm loans to the tune of Rs 1.38 lakh crore in the first half of 2009-10, meeting over 42% of the target set by the government for the whole financial year.

India's largest thermal power generator by sales National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) rose 0.12%. The company said after market hours on 19 November 2009 that a joint venture agreement has been executed amongst NTPC, Power Finance Corporation, Power Grid Corporation of India and Rural Electrification Corporation for formation of a public limited company to carry out and promote the business of energy efficiency, energy conservation and climate change. In this joint venture company, all the four promoters shall contribute 25% equity each it said.

Among other power stocks, Torrent Power, Reliance Power, Tata Power Company, CESC rose by between 0.17% to 2.84%.

India's largest engineering and construction firm by sales Larsen & Toubro rose 0.14%. The company on 17 November 2009 said Gilbarco Inc. has bought its petroleum dispensing pump business.

Telecom stocks fell as the tariff war in the sector intensified after Tata Teleservices extended its per-second billing scheme to roaming calls. The ongoing price war has hit profitability of mobile operators. India's largest mobile telecom services provider by sales Bharti Airtel fell 4.48%. The company reduced roaming rates by up to 60% on Friday. Bharti Airtel has slipped to third position in terms of monthly additions, data from an industry body showed. Bharti Airtel in October 2009 added about 27 lakh new users, lower than 29 lakh added by Vodafone Essar and over 38 lakh added by Tata Teleservices.

Bharti expects the current state of stiff competition to continue into 2010, as the government worked on new rules that may allow faster consolidation.

Among other telecom stocks, Reliance Communications and Idea Cellular fell by between 1.04% to 2.85%.

Rate sensitive realty shares fell after the RBI, late last month, raised the provisioning requirements for loans to commercial real estate from 0.4% to 1% at a regular monetary policy review. Indiabulls Real Estate, Unitech, DLF fell by between 0.16% to 0.69%.

The latest RBI move will result in increase in borrowing costs for realty firms which depend heavily on borrowing. In view of large increase in credit to the commercial real estate sector over the last one year and the extent of restructured advances in this sector, it would be prudent to build cushion against likely non-performing assets (NPAs), the central bank said in its quarterly policy review.

IT stocks fell on a stronger rupee. India's second largest software company by sales Infosys fell 0.82% even as its ADR rose 0.55% on Friday. Infosys BPO, the business processing outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys Technologies, recently announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire all of the outstanding interests of McCamish Systems LLC, a premier business process solutions provider, based in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States.

The acquisition is expected to be completed later this year subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions. The upfront consideration for the deal is $38 million with up to an additional $20 million payable to the sellers if McCamish Systems achieves certain financial targets in the future. The announcement was made on 12 November 2009.

India's third largest software company by sales Wipro fell 0.55% as its ADR fell 0.15% on Friday. Wipro subsidiary Infocrossing signed a five-year deal with the US-based Cliffs Natural Resources Inc, an international mining and natural resources firm, to provide IT infrastructure services, the global software major said Thursday 19 November 2009.

Wipro, sees robust deal pipeline on the back of improving IT demand worldwide, Suresh Vaswani, joint chief executive said on 10 November 2009. The company said on 5 November 2009 it had agreed to buy some personal care businesses of Yardley for about $45.5 million, adding to its consumer goods business. Wipro said it had signed an agreement with UK-based Lornamead group, which owns the Yardley brand, for the businesses in Asia, the Middle East, Australasia and some African markets.

India's largest software company by sales Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) rose 0.12%. The company recently secured a 150 million pounds software implementation contract for 15 years from Cardiff city council, UK.

The rupee gained on Monday boosted by the dollar's drop against major units overseas and tracking higher Asian stocks. The partially convertible rupee was at 46.47/48, stronger than 46.60/61 at close on Friday. A firm rupee adversely affects operating profit margins of IT firms as the sector derives a lion's share of revenue from exports

UltraTech Cement, a unit of conglomerate Aditya Birla Group rose 3.39%. The company absorbed sister unit Samruddhi Cement, to form the country's biggest cement firm. The move, flagged in October 2009, was approved by the boards of both companies on Sunday. In October, the group said it will hive off the cement business of flagship firm Grasim Industries into unit Samruddhi in a cashless transaction and later merge it with group firm UltraTech. Samruddhi shareholders will receive four shares of UltraTech for every seven held in Samruddhi. UltraTech will also issue 14.95 crore new shares, boosting its capital to Rs 274 crore.

Among the other cement stocks, Ambuja Cements and ACC rose by between 1.61% to 2.97%.

Sugar stocks fell after the government restored the cane pricing power of the states. Bajaj Hindustan, Balrampur Chini, Dhampur Sugars and Shree Renuka Sugars fell by between 2.46% to 6.12%.

The government has said that SAP or the state administered price will prevail. While the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) is unlikely to be scrapped the subsection 3(B) of the sugar ordinance which asked state governments to pay the difference between SAP and FRP is likely to be done away with. The difference now will be borne by the mills as was the earlier practice rather than the states.

Banking stocks surged late in Friday session, as rumors of Dena bank being taken over by Canara bank spread. If permitted it would be a welcome beginning for the whole host of mergers in the space. Banking stocks had already seen a large addition in open interest on Friday, and punters may book profit today at higher level.

Markets have come back from 5080-5180 resistance twice. We need RIL fire power to go past this critical zone and trace towards 5300. Reliance’s bid for LyondellBasell, if successful, would be India’s highest buyout till date. RIL’s underperformance of more than 35% in last 6 months makes us believe that if markets were to go up from here, RIL will lead that rally. The big boy looks set to provide leadership before it goes ex-bonus this Thursday.

The market may open higher extending Friday (20 November 2009)'s gains on positive Asia. The equities may remain volatile over the next few days as traders rollover positions in the derivative segment from November 2009 series to December 2009 series ahead of the expiry of the near month November 2009 contracts on Thursday, 26 November 2009.

The government has not yet chalked out a roadmap to withdraw stimulus in the first half of 2010, the junior finance Minister Namo Narain Meena said on Friday. Early in November, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said the government would take appropriate action next year to wind down stimulus.

Mass protests by sugarcane farmers backed by political opposition parties forced the parliament to adjourn for a second day on Friday, 20 November 2009 a major headache for the ruling Congress party. The standoff over price deregulation highlights the difficulty Congress faces to balance the implementation of long-stalled financial reforms with the demands of its large rural base.

The government has set reform of the insurance sector as a priority for the winter parliament session that began on 19 November 2009. The bill, which was stalled in the last parliament, proposes raising the foreign investment limit in insurance companies from 26 % to 49%. The government also wants to open up the pension sector to private and foreign firms and give equal voting rights to foreigners in private-sector banks, which are currently limited to 10% irrespective of their actual holding.

Meanwhile, the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have decided to withdraw starting next January a facility that allowed Indian firms to buy back foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) issued to overseas investors, in yet another move to unwind measures introduced last year at the height of the global credit crisis. Companies that have issued such bonds, which have both debt and equity features, will have to convert them into shares or redeem them at face value, depending on investor preference.

In addition to the decision to discontinue the special facility for buying back FCCBs, the government has already proposed doing away the relaxation on pricing foreign borrowings another measure announced last year to help Indian companies raise funds during the credit crunch. This is aimed at containing capital flows, which continue to be strong this year and have crossed the $15-billion mark.

The government is not considering imposing a tax to curb an influx in overseas funds, and indeed wants an increase in inflows, the deputy chairman of the government's planning commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Friday. He said foreign funds were needed for developing infrastructure such as road projects and were unlikely to create asset price bubbles.

He said flow of funds could become a "real problem" by next year, and India would perhaps have no other option but to impose restrictions. Higher capital inflows have resulted in currency appreciation mainly in Asia and Latin America, prompting central banks contemplate a range of measures to hold back the tide.

ICICI Bank may see action after bank said on Saturday it raised $750 million (about Rs 3,500 crore) through an overseas bond issue, at an yield of 5.5 %.

Reliance Industries (RIL), will be in action on reports company has put a bid to acquire bankrupt chemicals maker LyondellBasell Industries AF. RIL said on Saturday evening that it had submitted a preliminary non-binding offer to acquire, for cash, a controlling interest in Rotterdam, Netherlands-based LyondellBasell.

RIL also said it is "reviewing a number of global opportunities for growth in its core business," including LyondellBasell. The conglomerate said its offer is "preliminary and subject to customary conditions, including conduct of due diligence, documentation and receipt of creditor support."

Meanwhile, the initial public offer of Cox and Kings, a global tour operator, was subscribed 6.31 times. The bidding for the issue was closed on Friday, 20 November 2009.

Most of Asian Stocks edged higher on Monday for first time in three days, on signs the economic recovery is gathering pace. The key benchmark indices in China, HongKong, Singapore and Taiwan rose by between 0.01% to 0.6%. The key benchmark indices in South Korea and Indonesia fell by between 0.01% to 0.16%. Japanese market remained closed on Monday due to holiday.

US markets ended flat with a positive bias after a rocky session on Friday 20 November 2009 as investors juggled a disappointing jobs report and some analyst upgrades. General Electric was the biggest gainer on the Dow, up 6.2%, after Oppenheimer and Bernstein, raised their ratings on the stock to outperform.

The Dow slipped 14.28 points, or 0.1%, to 10,318.16. The S&P 500 index was down 3.52 points, or 0.3%, to 1,091.38, while the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 10.78 points, or 0.5%, to 2,146.04.

The economic data for came in worse than expected. The labor department said employers cut 190,000 jobs in October 2009 and the unemployment rate jumped to 10.2% its highest level in more than 26 years. In other data, wholesale inventories fell 0.9% in September 2009 and consumer borrowing fell by $ 14.8 billion in September.

Back home, the key benchmark indices snapped last two days' losses, taking cue from higher European stocks on Friday 20 November 2009. Comments by the deputy chairman of the government's planning commission that the government is not considering imposing a tax to curb an influx in overseas funds also helped ease worries of likely measures from the policymaker to temper inflows.

Nalco in talks with bank for Rs10,000 crore Iran project - Business Standard

RIL may fuel India Inc's overseas M&A drive - Business Standard

Events for the day

Major corporate action:

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Nil

Market Commentary

Global signals

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On Friday, the European shares ended the week on a negative note, with the major indices sliding for the fourth session on a trot owing to the banking and energy stocks that acted as a drag on the markets. FTSE 100 closed 0.31% lower at 5251.

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Even the major US indices declined for the third consecutive day, however marginally, due to weaker results posted by the computer maker Dell. Dow recovered early losses and closed almost flat at 10318, losing 0.1%.

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In today's trade, the major Asian indices are trading mixed, wherein Shanghai Composite, Hang Seng and Strait Times remained in the green with marginal gains in the range of 0.26%-0.36% each. While rest all the indices are trading in red with marginal losses. At the time of writing this report, SGX Nifty that opened flat, slides marginally by by 12 points.

Indian markets

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With mixed cues coming from the global front, the domestic markets are expected to open weak and remain range bound. While the volatility will continue.

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Among the local indices, the Nifty could test the 5100-5150 range on the up side, while on the down side it could find support at 5000 and 4920. While the Sensex is likely to get support at 16900 and may face resistance at 17300.

Indian ADR's

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Among the Indian ADRs trading on the US bourses, only Wipro and Rediff closed in the red with a loss of 0.15% and 0.67% respectively. While the rest ADRs closed in the green with the gains in the range of 0.32%-2.92% each wherein HDFC Bank surged the most.

Commodity cues

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In the commodity space, the Crude oil prices fell marginally, with the Nymex light crude oil for December series declining by $0.56 to settle at $76.90 a barrel.

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In the metals space, the yellow metal continues to surge with the Comex Gold for December series rising by $6.60 to settle at $1148.50 a troy ounce, while Comex Silver for December series almost remained flat, fell by mere $0.01 to settle at $18.45 to a troy ounce.

Daily trend of FII/MF investment in equities

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On November 20, 2009, FIIs were the net sellers of the Indian Stocks in the tune of Rs334.30 crore (with the gross purchase of Rs2083.50 crore and gross sales of Rs2417.80 crore).

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While the Domestic mutual funds mutual funds, on November 19, 2009, were the net seller of the stocks in the tune of Rs176.70 crore (with gross purchase of Rs509.50 crore and gross sales of Rs686.20 crore).

Bajaj Auto plans to raise the monthly production of its Pulsar bike to 90,000 units per month in the next six months and targets to sale one million units per annum by the end of next financial year. (ET)

GVK Power & Infrastructure expressed its intent to further hike its holdings in Bangalore and Mumbai airports. (BL)

GVK in talks to acquire L&T's holding in Bengaluru International Airport. (DNA)

GVK Power & Infrastructure to raise up to Rs18bn. (BL)

Tata Steel to switch 56% of securities into convertible bonds. (BL)

Bharti Airtel announced a new plan whereby subscribers can avail themselves of national roaming services for as low as 60paise/min, which is 60% lower than existing tariffs. (BL)

JK Lakshmi Cement to raise around Rs8bn through debt and equity to part-finance setting up a greenfield project in Chhattisgarh. (ET)

US-based Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation has filed a case in a US court against Indian drugmaker Lupin, alleging that it has infringed its patent in applying for marketing approval for a dermatology medicine. (BS)

Emami is scouting for acquisitions over Rs8bn in both domestic and overseas markets. (BS)

NALCO is in talks with an Islamic bank in Indonesia for a loan to revive its Rs100bn Iran project. (BS)

Gammon Infrastructure Projects receives an order worth Rs8.5bn from the NHAI. (DNA)

Bharat Hotels will invest around Rs23bn in 42 hotels over the next four years. (FE)

JSW Steel seeks partners for its alumina, cement plans. (FE)

Ranbaxy Laboratories has recalled from the US market a batch of drug capsules used in treating skin infections. (FE)

HDFC Standard Life plans to come out with an (IPO) in the next financial year. (BL)

Foreign exchange reserves rose by US$962mn to US$286bn, for the week ended November 12. (BL)

DoT and the Ministry of Defence have struck an agreement whereby the armed forces will release 25 MHz of radio frequency. (BL)

Centre has decided to spare state governments the burden of bearing the cost of higher sugarcane procurement prices paid by mills. (FE)

Government mulls tax to phase out fuel-inefficient vehicles. (BL)

The number of telephone subscribers increased to 526mn with more than 16mn new mobile users added in October. (BL)

TRAI fixes mobile switchover charges at Rs19. (TOI)

TRAI is learnt to be working to come out with its recommendation on spectrum management and licensing terms for 2G services, before the 3G auction deadline of January 14. (DNA)

This isn't good or bad. It's just the way of things. Nothing stays the same.

Bulls will hope for a bounce back at regular intervals during the interim rough patch being seen on the bourses. At the same time bears will continue to scout for money making opportunities. One should remain on guard as volatility could escalate ahead of Thursday’s F&O expiry. Don’t get hurt while the bull-bear tussle is on.

The Nifty is likely to oscillate between 5100 and 4900 depending on the newsflow and fund flows. With the key indices up smartly from March lows, the upside may be limited from here on. There are some concerns on the pace of the rally amid a somewhat murky outlook but no need to panic as such.

Globally, risk appetite may start easing a bit as we approach the year end. Demand for defensive plays may shoot up. Dollar’s movement will continue to determine the near-term fate of global equities. Economic data will of course continue to have a bearing on sentiment. The overseas Christmas holiday season will also be keenly followed.

For India, the big event will be Q2 GDP data, which will be released on Nov. 30. This will be followed by quarterly results and RBI's policy review in January and Budget in February.

Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) would be in the spotlight today after making a bid for LyondellBasell Industries.

Essar Oil Ltd. may also rise after a report that Royal Dutch Shell Plc is acquiring a 10% stake in the company as part of a deal to sell three refineries to the Indian company.

Sugar stocks will remain in focus after the Government dumped a controversial clause in the proposed sugar ordinance. Also, the Prime Minister has left for the much-hyped US visit over the weekend. There may be a few announcements that could be of interest to the stock market.

FIIs were net sellers in the cash segment on Friday at Rs4.64bn on a provisional basis. The local funds were net buyers of Rs184.6mn, according to figures published on the NSE's web site. In the F&O segment, the foreign funds were net sellers at Rs2.98bn. FIIs were net sellers of Rs3.34bn on Thursday. Mutual Funds were net sellers of Rs1.77bn in the cash segment on the same day. FIIs' net investments in Indian stocks this year have crossed $15bn.

Lots of key economic reports are due in the US this week, including data on home sales, housing prices, a revised reading on GDP, a monthly read on consumer confidence, durable goods order, personal income and consumer spending. PC maker HP will declare its results after the closing bell on Monday.

US financial markets will be shut on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday, and trading will end early on Friday. With many traders likely to take next week off, the traded volume of shares will be small, which could exaggerate swings in the market.

ECB chief Jean-Claude Trichet on Friday tightened the rules for the collateral it accepts against loans as it tries to restore the proper functioning of markets and prepares the ground to unwind emergency liquidity measures.

“Not all our liquidity measures will be needed to the same extent as in the past,” Trichet said at a conference in Frankfurt. “Any non-standard measure whose continuation would pose a threat to the achievement of price stability must be undone promptly and unequivocally.”

US stocks closed down for a third day running on Friday, as investors remained wary about valuations after this year's stupendous rally from the bear market lows. The drop in risk appetite led to some strength in the dollar and bonds.

The energy sector led the market lower due to a pullback in commodity prices. The technology sector was also weak, hurt by a bigger-than-expected drop in profits at the personal-computer maker Dell.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 14.28 points, or 0.1%, at 10,318.16, up 0.5% for the week but off 1.1% in the past three days of the week. This fall is the Dow's longest since a four-day pullback from Sept. 30 to Oct. 2.

The technology-laden Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 0.5% to 2,146.04, down 1% on the week. It was hurt in part on Friday by a 10% decline in Dell.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.3% to 1,091.38, led by a 0.9% decline in its energy sector. The S&P categories posting gains on Friday were utilities, consumer staples, and health care, all sectors traditionally used as defensive bets. Friday's decline pushed the S&P into the red for the week, off 0.2%.

Less than 7 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, the fourth-slowest trading session of the year.

The S&P 500 rose as much as 64% from a 12-year low in March, closing at a 13-month high on Nov. 17. After bottoming at 12-year lows in March, stocks have been on a near-continuous rally fueled by signs of economic stabilisation.

The dollar rallied against the euro and most other foreign currencies after the ECB unveiled its first step towards reversing the unprecedented stimulus measures. The bank said in a surprise announcement that it will tighten the standards under which it accepts newly issued asset-backed securities as collateral from banks.

European stocks slipped as ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said that the central bank will remove liquidity in order to ensure the bank doesn’t fuel inflation.

“Not all our liquidity measures will be needed to the same extent as in the past,” Trichet said at a conference in Frankfurt. “Any non-standard measure whose continuation would pose a threat to the achievement of price stability must be undone promptly and unequivocally.”

Trichet has already signaled the ECB is unlikely to renew its offer of 12-month loans to banks after the third installment in December.

The Dollar Index, which gauges the dollar against a basket of six major currencies, rose 0.4% to 75.607 and climbed as high as 75.879. It rose three out of the last four days after touching a 15-month low on Nov. 16. The US currency gained against all 16 major currencies except the yen. The yen rose against all 16.

The dollar's gains weighed on commodities, which are traded globally in terms of the US currency. Oil futures fell for a second straight day, off 74 cents to end at US$76.72 per barrel, up 0.5% on the week.

But gold futures managed to post a sixth straight record, up US$5 at US$1,146.40 per ounce, up 2.7% on the week at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Prices for US Treasurys were mixed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, fell to 3.36% from 3.50% late on Thursday. The yield on the 3-month Treasury bill, which is seen as a temporary shelter from market volatility, stood at 0.015%.

D.R. Horton, the second-largest US homebuilder, said that its quarterly loss narrowed to US$231.9mn, or 73 cents a share, in the fourth quarter ended Sept. 30. Shares fell 15%. Analysts were expecting a loss of 30 cents per share.

After the closing bell on Thursday, Dell reported a sharp drop in quarterly profit that fell short of Wall Street's estimates. The stock tumbled 10%.

Also on Thursday, analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded the semiconductor industry. That came one day after two key software companies issued cautious profit outlooks.

But, retailer Gap said that its quarterly profit surged 25%.

A government report showed that more US states suffered rising unemployment rates, though fewer reported joblessness above the national average in October.

Wall Street started the week on a high, closing at 13-month highs on Monday and Tuesday. A softer dollar and bets that interest rates will remain low for much longer sent the S&P 500 above the key 1,100 level early in the week.

But the undertone turned more cautious on Wednesday after government data showed a surprise drop in new home construction and a couple of software makers announced bearish profit forecast.

Housing and technology woes continued to plague the market on Thursday as well after a report showed that nearly 10% of all mortgage loans were delinquent in the third quarter and analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded the semiconductor industry.

On Friday, technology shares remained under pressure after Dell reported weak third-quarter results late on Thursday. Homebuilder stocks fell after D.R. Horton posted a larger-than-expected quarterly loss and said that conditions in the industry remain challenging.

European indices ended in the red on Friday, as banking stocks came under pressure after the ECB suggested that the central bank will remove extraordinary liquidity measures that have helped commercial lenders during the crisis. Auto shares also put in a weak performance.

The Stoxx 600 index lost 0.8% to 243.62, down for the fourth straight session and bringing weekly losses to 1.7%. Friday's move pared year-to-date gains for the Stoxx 600 index to around 23%.

Germany's DAX index shed 0.7% to 5,663.15, while the French CAC-40 index declined 0.8% at 3,729.36 and the UK's FTSE 100 index dropped 0.3% to 5,251.41.

After rallying for three straight days, bulls seem to have lost some steam as the BSE Sensex ended below the 17,000 mark, however, the NSE Nifty managed to hold on the 5050 mark. Weak cues from the Asian and the European markets coupled with selling pressure in the Oil & Gas and the Banking stocks dragged the Sensex to end below the 17,000 levels.

The BSE Sensex slipped 52 points to end at 16,998 after touching a high of 17,098 and a low of 16,958. The index opened at 17,050 against the previous close of 17,050. The NSE Nifty ended flat at 5,054.

In Asia, the Nikkei in Japan was down 0.6%, while Australia's S&P/ASX ended marginally higher by 0.2% at 4,739. Shanghai SE Composite was up 0.5% and Hang Seng index in Hong Kong fell 0.3%.

In Europe, stocks were trading in the green. The DAX in Germany was up 0.6% and the CAC 40 index in France was up 0.5%. The FTSE in the UK was up 0.2%.

Coming back to India, among the BSE sectoral indices, the Oil & Gas index was the top loser, shedding 1%, followed by the Banking index that was down 0.91% and the BSE Capita Goods index was down 0.7%.

Major gainers were BSE Metals index up 1.2% and BSE FMCG index up 0.6%.

The BSE Mid-Cap index ended flat while the BSE Small-Cap index was up by 0.7%.

Among the 30-components of Sensex, 18 stocks ended in the red and 12 ended in the positive terrain. Reliance Infra, L&T, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Grasim were among the top losers. On the other hand, among the major gainers were Tata Motors, Tata Steel, ITC, Infosys and JP Associates.

Outside the frontline indices, the big losers in the broader market were Mphasis,Exide Ind, Spice Tele, Jain Irrigation and Fin Tech. On the other hand, gainers included Pantaloon Retail, GE Shipping, GTL Infra and Sintex Ind.

Shares of SAIL advanced by 0.5% to end at Rs187. Reports stated that Jharkhand government has agreed to renew the company’s lease for the Buddhaburu mine, having reserves of 810mn tons.

The company also announced that it was planning to spend Rs600bn for expansion in next 3 years and the company is also reportedly planning to jointly develop a limestone project at Arki in Himachal Pradesh with a 3MTPA capacity.

BHEL announced that it formed a joint venture with Madhya Pradesh Power Generation for 1600MW power plant. Shares of BHEL ended flat at Rs2275. The stock opened at Rs2273 and made an intra-day high of Rs2283 and a low of Rs2255. Total traded volumes stood at 0.11mn shares.

Union Bank of India plans to raise US$500mn by selling bonds by March; the Chairman M.V. Nair was quoted as saying. The bank plans to use the proceeds to fund its overseas operations

The stock ended at Rs270 adding 1.7%, it opened at Rs266 and made an intra-day high of Rs271 and a low of Rs262. Total traded volumes stood at 0.11mn shares.

Wockhardt announced that it launched anti-hypertensive drug Nicardipine injections in USA. The stock erased early gains and ended lower by 1.5% at Rs180 after it opened at Rs183. It made an intra-day high of Rs187 and a low of Rs179. Total traded volumes stood at 0.14mn shares.

Shares of Redington surged by over 3% to end at Rs316 after 2.2% of its equity, or ~1.7mn shares were traded in a single block on the BSE. The deal was transacted at an average price of Rs310 per share on the BSE.

The stock opened at Rs307 and made an intra-day high of Rs324 and a low of Rs306. Total traded volumes stood at 1.9mn shares.

Lloyd Electric & Engineering announced that through Janka Engineering s.r.o., (a wholly owned subsidiary company) having its registered seat at Prague, Czench Republic has signed a purchase agreement for the acquisition of assets (no liabilities) with Trademarks and 'JANKA' brand of Janka Radotin a.s., a leading czech based manufacturer of diversified Air Handling Product portfolio well positioned in the Czech market for a total consideration of approx. Euro 3.66mn, which is subject to the adjustment on the closing date.

The stock rose over 2% to end at Rs55.5. The stock opened at Rs54.6 and made an intra-day high of Rs56.85 and a low of Rs53.60. Total traded volumes stood at 0.18mn shares.

US stocks kicked off the week that ended on Friday, 20 November, 2009 on a strong mode. But at the end, indices finished on a mixed basis. While earning reports continued to tickle in, it was most of the retailers that reported earnings. Other than that, surprises came from a few big companies which missed earning estimates. The dollar once again played an important role for trading in the week and ended with modest gains. t

For the week, Dow ended higher by 47.69 points (0.5%) at 10,318.16. Nasdaq ended lower by 21.84 points (1%) at 2146.04. S&P 500 ended lower by 2.1 points (0.2%) at 1091.38. Six of ten sectors ended in the red led by technology and consumer discretionary sectors. Materials and healthcare sectors outperformed relatively.

Among economic reports expected for the week, The Labor Department in US reported on Thursday, 19 November that the number of people filing initial claims for state unemployment benefits was flat at a seasonally adjusted 505,000 in the week ended 14 November.

In the US market on Friday, 20 November, a lack of positive catalysts and a stronger dollar weighed on stocks for the entire session. An earnings miss from Dell had already put pressure on stocks while weakness in overseas markets added further pain.

On that day, The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended lower by 14.28 points at 10318.16. Nasdaq ended lower by 10.78 points at 2146.04. S&P 500 ended lower by 3.52 points at 1091.38. Consumer discretionary stocks made up the best performing sector on that session. Financials showed relative weakness for the entire session and made up the only major sector to finish with a loss.

Losses in the Nasdaq were steeper than those in the Dow or S&P 500, though. Most of that was attributable to weakness among semiconductors.

During that day, the technology sector was heavily pressured due to earnings miss from dell. On the other hand, retailer Gap met earnings estimate.

In the currency market on Friday, the dollar headed up against most of the major currencies. The dollar index, which measures the strength of dollar against basket of six other currencies, rose by almost 0.6% before settling with a 0.4% gain for the week.

Crude prices fell for the second consecutive day at Nymex on Friday, 20 November, 2009. Prices registered losses due to the relatively strong dollar.

On Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for December delivery closed at $76.72/barrel (lower by $0.74 or 1%). Before Thursday, crude had gained more than 4% in the past three sessions. For the week, crude ended higher by 0.5%.

For the year, Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 are higher by 17.6%, 36.1% and 20.8% respectively

Yellow metal prices ended higher on Friday, 20 November, 2009. Prices rose as the dollar became strong but still pared some of its earlier gains. Silver ended little lower.

Generally, a stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil and gold, which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa.

On Friday, gold for December delivery ended at $1,146.8, higher by $4.9 (0.4%) an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Year to date, gold prices are higher by almost 31%.

On Friday, December Comex silver futures ended slightly lower by 1 cent at $18.455 an ounce.

In the currency market on Friday, the dollar headed up against most of the major currencies. The dollar index, which measures the strength of dollar against basket of six other currencies, rose by almost 0.6% before settling with a 0.4% gain.

In 2008, gold prices ended higher by 5.5%. The dollar index had gained 12% that year.

Crude prices fell for the second consecutive day at Nymex on Friday, 20 November, 2009. Prices registered losses due to the relatively strong dollar.

On Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for December delivery closed at $76.72/barrel (lower by $0.74 or 1%). Before Thursday, crude had gained more than 4% in the past three sessions. For the week, crude ended higher by 0.5%.

Oil prices had reached a high of $147 on 11 July, 2008 but have dropped almost 52% since then.

In the currency market on Friday, the dollar headed up against most of the major currencies. The dollar index, which measures the strength of dollar against basket of six other currencies, rose by almost 0.6% before settling with a 0.4% gain.

During the week, the EIA reported that crude inventories fell 900,000 barrels in the week ended 13 November, 2009 against an expectation of a modest increase. The weekly EIA data also showed U.S. crude imports fell 0.9% to 8.58 million barrels a day, and total petroleum demand rose 1% to 18.5 million barrels a day. Gasoline demand rose nearly 2% to 9.02 million barrels a day, returning to the level seen at the end of last month.

The report also detailed a decline of 1.7 million barrels in gasoline stockpiles and a drop of 300,000 barrels in distillates, which include heating oil and diesel.

Among other energy products, December gasoline was rose 0.6% to $1.9692 a gallon, and December heating oil dropped 1% to $1.9756 a gallon.

Also on Friday, December natural gas rose 1.9% to $4.424 per million British thermal units.

Crude prices had ended FY 2008 lower by 54%, the largest yearly loss since trading began at Nymex.

We recommend a buy in Aegis Logistics stock from a short-term perspective. It is visible from the charts that the stock has been on a stable uptrend since the March low of Rs 52, forming higher trading zones. Within this uptrend, the stock had consolidated sideways in a narrow band of Rs 130 and Rs 150 between early September and November. The stock has a key long-term support at Rs 130. In the recent times it made an upward break through the sideways movement and gained 6 per cent with good volume on November 20. The stock is hovering well above its 21- and 50-day moving averages. The intermediate-term up-trendline is still in place. The daily and weekly relative strength indices are showing signs of optimism. Our short-term forecast is bullish on the stock. We expect it to extend its up move until it hits our price target of Rs 180. Trader with a short-term horizon can buy the stock while maintaining a stop-loss at Rs 155.